Let's talk about Spike Lee's 'Do the Right Thing'

[spazurek]

I just saw ‘Do the Right Thing’ for the second time last night, and I’m as convinced as ever that it’s a brilliant work of art. But I have some concerns with the moral of the film that I’d like to discuss.

[Warning, I will be discussing pivotal events that take place in the film, so don’t read this if you haven’t seen the film but would like to.]

First let me disclose that I am a white middle-class male. I’m sure Spike Lee would consider this important in my interpretation of the film.

I felt like the film was trying to assign most of the blame to the white characters (Sal and family, the cops) for the tragic death of Radio Raheem and the ensuing riot. I didn’t agree, and I found it somewhat offensive.

The key events leading to the tragedy were:
(1) Spiralling racial tensions, for which each group could be blamed, especially Vito and Buggin Out.
(2) Obnoxious provocations of Sal and family, in Sal’s restaurant, by Buggin Out and Radio Raheem. In both cases, violence was first threatened by the black characters (quite clearly, though not explicitly), then responded to in kind by Sal and family. I think it’s a key consideration that Buggin Out and Radio Raheem issued unprovoked threats, and yes I do think walking into someone’s restaurant with a blaring boom box is a threat.
(3) Even more menacing unprovoked threats by Buggin Out and Radio Raheem toward Sal and family in their restaurant (near the end of the film, at closing time).
(4) Sal destroying Radio Raheem’s boom box.
(5) Radio Raheem strangling Sal, with the other black patrons initiating violence against Sal and family. This looked to me like a serious attempt to kill Sal.
(6) The cops coming to restrain Radio Raheem, who fought with all his considerable might against them after demonstrating a clear willingness to commit murder. These are key considerations in what happens next.
(7) The cops knowingly choking Radio Raheem well beyond the point where he was restrained, thereby killing him quite unnecessarily. Let me be clear here: the cop who killed him knew that he was using far more force than necessary and this cannot be excused.
(8) The black community turning on Sal and family, destroying his restaurant after what is to me a heartbreaking, shameful betrayal of Sal by Mookie.

As the above indicates, I don’t hold Sal and family responsible for much except for ratcheting up racial tensions, and Sal in particular is a genuinely good guy (though still a racist). And while the cop who killed Raheem did a terrible thing, I think Raheem would have killed Sal, and the cop at least was initially doing something good and necessary (preventing Sal from being killed), unlike Raheem.

Let’s talk about this! I’m sure others (including Lee himself) would interpret events quite differently, and I’m interested to hear other perspectives.

[Lakai]

Check out this interesting video essay:

A close look at the movie’s construction confirms not just its entertainment value and political relevance, but its generosity of spirit. Do the Right Thing is not a film-as-argument. It’s a film about arguments. More specifically, it’s about the roots of the grievances people hold and the anger they unleash.

Lee shows where the urge to fight rather than talk originates: not in rational grievance, but in the need to impress friends, heal wounded pride, assert dominance or simply to let off steam on the hottest day of the year. Repeat viewings of the movie confirm that many of the hostile encounters were triggered by personal issues that are only tangentially related to politics. For instance, Buggin Out’s anger at Sal and his sons is less about the absence of black faces on Sal’s wall of fame than the fact that Sal snapped, pulled a bat on him and kicked him out in front of his neighbors.

[astorian]

I have little use for Spike Lee as a human being, and don’t think much of most of his movies.

Still, “Do the Right THing” works on many levels. It shows an evenhandedness and generosity that many of his films lack.

White viewers might want to consider that…

1. Of the three main white characters, two are portrayed as good people. And even the bigoted son, Pino, isn’t an altogether bad guy.

2. There isn’t any ONE reason for the riot that broke out. If you watch the film as a whole, you’ll see there are a DOZEN moments where violence COULD have broken out, but didn’t. And THAT, I think, is a big part of Spike Lee’s message.

That is, a lot of white people assume everything is hunkydory in terms of race relations, because months or years have gone by without any major racial incidents. Lee is saying, “Don’t kid yourself- when there’s this much anger, frustration and resentment built up, it’s only a matter of time before something ugly happens. We’re just LUCKY it doesn’t happen more often.”